Was Cleopatra as beautiful as Elizabeth Taylor?

Was Cleopatra as beautiful as Elizabeth Taylor?

In the early 60s, Elizabeth Taylor’s classic Hollywood film Cleopatra created history with its pomp, grandeur and outstanding acting of the leading characters. Elizabeth Taylor was considered as one of the most beautiful Hollywood actresses of all times and Cleopatra raised her box-office popularity a lot. Besides, Richard Burton impressed the viewers with his manly performance in the role of Anthony.

The viewers associated Cleopatra, the Egyptian queen with Elizabeth Taylor and thought that she looked like Liz Taylor. A lot of curiosity was created with Cleopatra as she mesmerized both Julio Ceaser and Mark Anthony with her heavenly beauty. But eminent Egyptian historian Sally An Ashton at Cambridge University had given a different account of the features of Cleopatra.

The research showed that Cleopatra’s complexion was brownish, as opposed the reddish complexion of Elizabeth Taylor. She had both Greek and Egyptian features. Even her forehead was broader and cheeks were more pointed than Liz Taylor. Different descriptions of Cleopatra had been given by William Shakespeare, George Bernard Shaw and others.

The research of Sally An Ashton was based on gold ornaments, Egyptian statues, rings carrying the image of Cleopatra. Some of the ornaments were two thousand years old. The research is still going on. But it was disclosed before the media that other than the nose of Elizabeth Taylor there was hardly any similarity between Cleopatra.

Even if viewers accept the fact that Cleopatra had different features than Elizabeth Taylor, her epic performance still haunts viewers of Hollywood films. She had been considered as one of the princess who had lot of self-respect and the brilliant communication skills impressed both Julius Ceaser and Mark Anthony. In the Shakespearean play Julius Ceaser, he was killed by Brutus, Cassious and other conspirators of Rome who never wanted him to be the emperor. Mark Anthony was very loyal to Ceaser and after his death created public awareness about the brutal killing of Julius Ceaser.

Whenever Ceaser and Anthony went to Egypt they fell in love with Cleopatra, the Egyption queen. History apart, the film Cleopatra had exotic locations, romantic performance of the actors, actresses and colourful locations.

If the research is accepted worldwide, in that case a new Hollywood film should be made on the new description of Cleopatra given by Historian Sally An Ashton.

Chabi Biswas in Ajoy Kar's films.

Chabi Biswas in Ajoy Kar’s films.

Chabi Biswas, the greatest actor of Bengali cinema had shaped the destiny of renowned directors of the golden age including Satyajit Ray, Hritwik Ghatak, Tapan Sinha and others. Ajoy Kar learned photography from abroad and used the talents of the leading actors and actresses of celluloid with style.

Ajoy Kar had a great admiration for the legendary actor Chabi Biswas whose dignified appearance created a special dimension in silver screen. In Ajoy Kar’s epic film Saptapadi, Chabi Biswas played the role of the father of the central character Krishnendu Mukherjee that was played by Uttam Kumar. Uttam Kumar entered into an affair with Rina Brown, an Anglo Indian Christian character played by Suchitra Sen in the film.

Ajoy Kar displayed the social barriers that were led down in the marriage between two communities during the age of orthodox people. Chabi Biswas was an orthodox Brahmin and a devotee of Goddess Kali. He could not accept the transformation of Uttam Kumar from a Hindu to a Christian for marrying Suchitra Sen. He came to Suchitra Sen’s house and explained to her that if Uttam Kumar would have married her he would have been isolated from his family, his neighbours, the society, as a whole.

Suchitra Sen promised Chabi Biswas that she would leave Uttam Kumar and never meet him in her life. Uttam Kumar converted himself to Christian, became a doctor and never got a scope of marrying Suchitra Sen. At the end of the film when Suchitra Sen was injured due to bombing during second world war, Uttam Kumar while treating her, showed the letter written by Chabi Biswas where he realized that the way she sacrificed her life it was possible only from a noble soul and the criteria of good or bad lied in human soul, not religion, or caste, or creed, which were created by human being.

The astounding personality of Chabi Biswas converted the romantic film into a cine-classic which has been displayed a number of times in Film Institute in Pune, where Ajoy Kar trained young directors during the 70s, in the art of film making. It was one of the greatest blockbusters and remains one of the greatest Bengali films ever made by any director.

Whenever Chabi Biswas played any memorable character, the character was memorized by the audience for generations. It happened in Ajoy Kar’s film Suno Boro Nari.

Chabi Biswas played the role of an eminent barrister in the film with the name of Charu Babu of the firm titled “Udashin”. He was the father of Supriya Choudhury, and asked Uttam Kumar to reach her to Giridih where she was engaged with Dipak Mukherjee, a rich industrialist.

Supriya Choudhury communicated with Uttam Kumar during the train journey from Patna to Giridih, a number of times and entered into an affair with him. Due to that relationship the marriage got hauled up and Chabi Biswas wanted Uttam Kumar to leave Giridih. He wrote a letter and disclosed his identity of a Professor of Literature who had left Kolkata and settled in Giridih due to a past relationship which could not mature into marriage. Uttam Kumar boarded a train to leave Giridih when Supriya Choudhury entered the train after abandoning all her ties with her family. But the aristocracy of Chabi Biswas was reflected all along the film. The film was based on the literature of Subodh Ghosh and the classic literature was transformed into a classic film.

The unfortunate demise of Chabi Biswas in a road accident in 1962, ended the dream combination of Chabi Biswas with Ajoy Kar, and the viewers could not see him in classic films in the following period like Sat Pake Bandha, Dutta, etc. The films should be preserved and shown in the film and television institutes of the country.

Happy birthday to Rajesh Khanna

Happy birthday to Rajesh Khanna.

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Rajesh Khanna on 29th December, 2008. He had remained one of the most popular actors of 70s, before Amitabh Bacchan entered the film arena and gave birth to action films. The other reason why Rajesh Khanna is remembered even today was for the melodious music that he got from Kalyanji Anandji, RD Burman, Salil Choudhury, Laxmikant Pyarellal and other composers.

Although he started his career with films like Akhri Khat, Raaz, etc., in the late 60s, he got recognition with Shakti Shamanta’s super hit film Aradhana. In the 70s, Rajesh Khanna had a dream run with films of different directors including Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Asit Sen, Shakti Samanta and others.

Most of his films from 1971 to 1973, were super hit. And the music of these films created history. The songs of the film Anand, composed by Salil Choudhury were super hit, including “kahin door jab din dhal jaye”, “maine tere liye hi saat rang” sung by Mukesh and “zindagi kaisi hai peheli” sung by Manna Dey. The songs of the film Aan Milo Sajna composed by LP became super hit including Rafi’s song “aan milo sajna” and Kishore’s song “accha to hum chalte hai”.

The songs of the film Amar Prem composed by RD Burman became super hit including KK’s song “chingari koi bharke”, “kuch to log kahenge”, etc. Similarly the songs of the film Kati Patang composed by RD Burman became super hit including songs of KK like “ai shaam mastani”, Mukesh’s song “jis gali me”, etc.

Similarly songs of the film Safar composed by Kalyanji Anandji became super hit. Kishore’s song “zindagi ka safar” can be considered as one of the best songs that he sang during his long career. The songs of the film Namak Haram, Roti, Raaz, Bawarchi, were all very successful.

Rajesh Khanna created a romantic image and his films opposite various actresses like Sharmila Tagore, Mumtaz, Asha Parekh, Tanuja, Hema Malini and others created an era of romantic films. He became a role model for the younger generation.

But from the time Amitabh Bacchan entered the film arena he not only dethroned Rajesh Khanna but more than that changed the dimension of bollywood films. He played anti-establishment characters and persuaded other superstars like Vinod Khanna, Shatrughun Sinha, Dharmender, Firoz Khan, Sunil Dutt and others to play similar type of roles.

Action films dominated bollywood industry and films like Sholay, Deewar, Kalicharan, Burning Train, Jugnu, Zakhmee, Dharmatma faded away Rajesh Khanna’s romantic films like Soutan, Prem Nagar and other films.

Even then Rajesh Khanna continued acting for another 20 years and is even seen in a recent film in a role of an old person. Even Rishi Kapoor did case him in his directorial venture title A ab laut chale.

The viewers expect Rajesh Khanna to contribute in character roles the way Big B, Vinod Khanna and other veteran actors have done over the years.

Will Singh is Kinng bag most of the filmfare awards in 2009?

Will Singh is Kinng bag most of the filmfare awards in 2009?

Singh is Kinng has been considered as one of the biggest hits of 2008. The question that is hovering in the minds of most of the viewers is that will Singh is Kinng bag most of the filmfare awards in 2009? As filmfare awards these days are given on the basis of public voting and popularity ratio there is lot of possibility of the performers of the film to get rewarded for their hard work.

Firstly Akshay Kumar has been accepted as one of the most popular actors of bollywood surpassing Shahrukh Khan and Salman Khan. He had given a decent performance in Singh is Kinng, and his innocence in the role had appealed to the masses. Akshay Kumar had always been unlucky in respect of the filmfare award for the best actor which has been bagged by Shahrukh Khan 7 times. Anil Kapoor and Hrithik Roshan had got it a couple of times and Salman Khan did not get it ever. Akshay Kumar had got awards for best comedian a number of times, but if his effort in films are to be acknowledged he should be awarded filmfare for best actor this year.

Katrina Kaif has every possibility of bagging best actress award for her performance in the film Singh is Kinng. She had been sublime in both the films Race and Yuvvraaj. Although Race had done fantastic business, Yuvvraaj did mediocre business. Katrina has acted well in all these films and even if viewers argue in favour of Priyanka Chopra for the film Fashion, or Kareena Kapoor for Golmaal Returns, or Aishwarya Rai for Jodha Akbar, none of these actresses had given same amount of revenue that Katrina Kaif had given in 2008.

Pritam has every possibility of bagging the award for the best composer in 2008 with his romantic music in the film in Singh is Kinng. The songs “singh is kinng”, “dil kho gaya ho gaya” had remained one of the biggest hits of the year. The other film for which Pritam can get nomination is Race. The songs “pehli nazar me aisa jadoo kar diya”, “allah duhai hai”, etc., became smashing hit in the early part of the year. His contenders AR Rehman had given impressive music in the films Jodha Akbar, Yuvvraaj and Jaane Tu Ya Janne Na, and Vishal Shekhar had given impressive music in the film Bacchna Aye Haseeno.

Om Puri has the possiblity of getting filmfare award for best supporting actor for Singh is Kinng. He had given a natural performance just like his performance in other films. He had received a number of national and international awards and has been accepted as the best actor of the country along with Nasirruddin Shah. Kiron Kher has the possibility of getting filmfare award for best supporting actress for her decent performance in the film Singh is Kinng.

In a Nutshell, it can be said that Singh is Kinng, the biggest hit of 2008, has the possibility of bagging maximum number of filmfare awards as opposed to other successful films in 2008 including Race, Jodha Akbar, Jane Tu Ya Jaane Na, Ghajini, Golmaal Returns, Heroes and others.

Happy birthday to Twinkle Khanna

Happy birthday to Twinkle Khanna

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Twinkle Khanna on 29th December, 2008. She has left films after marrying Akshay Kumar, but her performances in the recent past still haunts the viewers of bollywood films.

She was very successful in the film Barsaat opposite Bobby Deol. Bobby Deol started his career with that film and it was produced by Dharmender. The music was impressive. Twinkle Khanna expressed her romantic films very well in the film. With the success of the film in the early 90s, Twinkle Khanna became a readymade choice for any type of film.

She acted with Shahrukh Khan in the film Badshah. Just like other films of Shahrukh Khan the film was based on fantasy and funny acts. Twinkle Khanna played her part very well in the film. The song “humto diwane hue yaar” became superhit. Twinkle Khanna also acted in the comedy film Joru Ka Ghulam with Govinda. As the name suggested, the film was related to the story of how a groom became obsessed with the bride and almost became her servant. Although the term was used in the literal sense, Govinda’s character proved the title of the film. Johnny Lever did well in the film.

Twinkle Khanna got a challenging role in Amir Khan’s film Mela. The story was related a girl being chased by dacoits and how she was saved. Amir Khan’s own brother acted in the film. The film had action sequences as well. Sonu Nigam’s song in the film “mela dilon ka aya hai” became super hit. The other challenge was matching Amir Khan’s acting performance in the film as in most of his films he had strived to reach perfection in the respective roles. The viewers accepted Twinkle Khanna’s performance opposite Amir Khan in the film.

Twinkle Khan in a number of films opposite Ajay Devgan also in the late 90s. She had acting in her blood, as her mother Dimple Kapadia is considered one of the greatest actresses of bollywood films with landmark performances in films like Lekin, Prahar, Krantiveer, Sagar, Rudali, to name a few. Besides her father Rajesh Khanna was a superstar of the 70s.

When Twinkle Khanna looked like dethroning Juhi Chawla, Preeti Zinta or Kajol in bollywood films, she married Akshay Kumar and ended her career. She must have been a proud wife as Akshay Kumar had proved himself to be the greatest entertainer of 2007 and 2008, with majority of his films becoming blockbusters.

But a lot of acting was still left in Twinkle Khanna. The viewers of bollywood films expect Twinkle Khanna to make a comeback and contribute in character roles where there are not many matured actresses at the moment.

Moushumi Chatterji - the charming star from Bengal.

Moushumi Chatterji – the charming star from Bengal.

Moushumi Chatterji, the Bengali actress acted both in Bengali and hindi films and showed her skills in both of them. She acted in the Bengali film Balika Badhu, where the film was based on child marriage and impressed the directors and producers with her performance.

From that time she ventured in Bombay and tried her luck in bollywood industry. Her film Anurag opposite Vinod Mehra became super hit. She played the role of a blind girl and got appreciation of the crowd. The songs in the film became very successful including songs like “woh kya hai” sung by Rafi.

She acted in action films like Goutam Govinda. The film was related to the story of Shashi Kapoor, a police officer who came to the village and trained all the rustic villagers the manner of self-defense. Shatrughun Sinha was his own brother, which was disclosed at the end of the film. Moushumi Chatterji showed her humour in the respective role. Moushumi also acted in suspense-thrillers like Benaam, opposite Big B, where there the anxiety relating to the kidnapping of her son was at issue. She expressed her feelings very well in the film.

She was brilliant in the film Manzil Manzil, opposite Big B. It was the remake of Mrinal Sen’s Bengali film Akash Kushum. Akash Kusum was based on the story relating to Soumitra Chatterji presenting a false story about himself before Aparna Sen with the help of his friend Shubendu Chatterji. In the hindi version also the story line was not changed. Moushumi Chatterji’s smile had a beauty of its own which she expressed in majority of films in style.

While acting in a number of bollywood films, she stormed Bengali films with her performance in the super hit film Ogo Bodhu Sundari, opposite Bengali superstar Uttam Kumar. The story was based on how Uttam Kumar, an academician brought a girl from the streets and taught her literature. Moushumi expressed the difficulty of forgetting her rustic language which she adopted from the environment she came from and learning the new language. The music given in the film by Bappi Lahiri became super hit. Songs like “ami ekjon shantoshisto”, “shudhu tumi nou obolakanto”, etc., sung by Kishore Kumar became super hit.

Her comedy conception was used by Gulzar and other directors very successfully. Her film Angoor opposite Sanjeev Kumar showed her comedy skills. The film was based on Uttam Kumar’s film Bhranti Bilas and had similarity with Shakespeare’s play Comedy of Errors. Sanjeev Kumar played the double role in Angoor that was played by Uttam Kumar in the Bengali film Bhranti Bilas, while Moushumi Chatterji played the role of his wife which was played by Sabitri Chatterji in the Bengali film. The two brothers were identical twins and Moushumi Chatterji got confused with her own husband and his brother. Deven Verma played a double role along with Sanjeev Kumar as his servant.

Her other successful films included Pati Patni Aur Woh, opposite Sanjeev Kumar, Ghayal, as the sister-in-all of Sunny Deol and many other films. Even she had acted in landmark Bengali films like Kori Diye Kinlam based on the epic novel of Bimal Mitra. The viewers expect Moushumi to contribute in character roles in bollywood films in future.

Winner of Lux Sabse Favourite Star Kaun awards 2008.

Winners of Lux Sabse Favourite Star Kaun awards.

Yesterday, on 27th December, 2008, Lux Sabse Favourite Star Kaun awards were given. Stars like Deepika Padukone, Neha Dhupia, Akshay Kumar, Katrina Kaif and others performed on stage while the awards were given. Sajid Khan anchored the show with his wit and humour.

Although the awards were focused at the performance of 2008, when nominations were shown there were stars who did not contribute to bollywood substantially in 2008, yet were nominated as popular stars. In other words the performances of actors, actresses, comedians, composers and directors in the last few years were also taken into consideration while giving the awards.

Paresh Rawal received the best comedian awards surpassing Johny Lever, Rajpal Yadav and Govinda who were also nominated for the award. Chunkey Pandey announced the award. Paresh Rawal had shown his versatility in many types of films including Sardar, Hera Pheri, Malamaal Weekly, Tamanna, to name a few, and he is considered as one of intellectual actors of modern films. Even if he did not receive the award he would still have been considered a versatile actor after Om Puri and Naseeruddin Shah.

Katrina Kaif received the best actress or heroine award for the year. She got it as against Kareena Kapoor, Rani Mukherjee, Aishwarya Rai, etc., who were also nominated for the award. Katrina Kaif had worked very hard to develop her hindi, and after blockbusters one after the other like Maine Pyar Kyun Kiya, Namaste London, Welcome, Partner, Race, Singh is Kinng, etc., she is the uncrowned queen of bollywood at the moment. It was strange that Priyanka Chopra after performing in so many films like Fashion, Dostana, Chamku, God Tussi Great Ho, did not get a nomination at all. Viewers expect her to get nominated under that category when the filmfare awards will be announced next year.

Akshay Kumar received the award for the best actor (hero) as against Salman Khan, Shahukh Khan, Amir Khan and Big B. After a long time he received the recognition for his hard work. He sang a rap song also from the film Chandni Chowk to China.

Viewers are interested to see whether Akshay Kumar can end the domination of Shahrukh Khan in filmfare awards next year with his successful film Singh is Kinng. Shahrukh Khan had received 7 filmfare awards inspite of brilliant performances of Amir Khan, Anil Kapoor, Akshay Khanna is the passed. Many section of the crowds believed that Shahrukh Khan had rigged the filmfare awards with his influence.

Deepika Padukone received the best new-comer award against Ranbir Kapoor and Kangana Ranaut. She had stormed bollywood with the superlative performance in the film Om Shanti Om. Her performance was equally outstanding in Bacchna Aye Haseeno. Viewers are interested to see her martial art in Chandi Chowk to China.

In a nutshell the awards are just a beginning of recognition of some of the leading stars of bollywood. Composers like Vishal Shekhar, Pritam are yet to open their account in filmfare award and are expected to provide strong challenge to AR Rehman, Shankar –Ehsaan – Loy, Anu Malik next year. Whenever new actors and actresses and technicians receive awards bollywood gets more variety and encouragement for better performances. Lets hope the filmfare awards will be different this year from other years.

Dia Mirza has to go a long way.

Dia Mirza has to go a long way.

Dia Mirza, the decent actress of bollywood films has to go a long way to maintain her stardom and feature in the films of leading producers and directors of bollywood industry. Dia Mirza, better known as Dia Mirza Handrich, was born on December 9th, 1981. She was runner up in Miss India 2000 Beauty contest.

She was the daughter of German interior designer named Frank Handrich and Bengali mother named Deepa Handrich. Her father died and her mother remarried Ahmed Mirza, and she retained the surname of her second father. When she entered films her initial ventures like Rehna Hai Tere Dil Mein, Deewanapan did not impress the viewers to that extent.

But her film Tumko Na Bhool Payenge, opposite Salman Khan, became very successful. Salman Khan and his friend were brilliant shooters. They were used by the home minister to kill his rivals. At that time Salman Khan was fired by his friend, he drowned in water and lost his memory. He was associated with Sushmita Sen in the first part of the film.

In the second part Salman Khan was saved by some strangers who lost their child in war. So they accepted Salman Khan as their son. Dia Mirza used to visit the family and in that way got emotionally attached with Salman Khan. The music in the film became extremely successful with Sonu Nigam’s title song “tumko na bhool payenge” becoming super hit. Dia Mirza’s performance was appreciated along with the performance of Sushmita Sen.

She got a memorable role in the film Parineeta. Although the role was not as prominent as that of Vidya Balan or Raima Sen, as it was based on novel of Sarat Chandra Chatterji and directed by Pradeep Sarkar, each and every character role was remembered by cinematic audience.

But her performances in films like Dus or Dum did not create a lasting impression with which she could have grabbed leading roles in future. She again impressed the viewers with her decent performance in the film Lage Raho Munnabhai.

She played the role of the daughter of Boman Irani, who showed a forged horoscope to Kulbhushan Kharbanda to get Dia Mirza married to his son. In reality she was a manglik, and people had reservations in marrying such girls. Sanjay Dutt after understanding the path of Mahatma Gandhi told Dia Mirza to disclose the reality. She said it and although Kulbhushan Kharbanda declined to get his son married to Dia Mirza, Abhishek Bacchan, his son married Dia Mirza as the truth shook his conscience.

She was impressive in her role in Shootout at Lokhandwala. But her appearance in films like Fight Club – Members only, or Cash did not impress the viewers to that extent. Her looks reflect the decency of urbanized young girls of good families. Whenever she had tried to play ultra-modern roles it did not pay her to that extent. Roles which suit Esha Deol or Shamita Shetty does not necessarily suit Dia Mirza.

She is presently working for the film Kabhi Bhi Kahin Bhi. The viewers feel that she has to be more choosy in selecting roles in future to stay in the race where Katrina Kaif, Priyanka Chopra, Kareena Kapoor, Aishwarya Rai had crossed some distance. Dia Mirza has lot of skills and has the capability of reaching the summit in bollywood films.

Happy birthday to Salman Khan.

Happy birthday to Salman Khan.

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Salman Khan on 27th December, 2008. He has been the other superstar other than Shahrukh Khan who had ruled bollywood films for the last 20 years. Although he had mixed results in respect of success of his films released in 2008, his popularity and box-office had remained intact.

He created an impression before the viewers with his romantic film Maine Pyar Kiya in 1989. After that he had acted in every type of film including comedy films, action films etc. His musical blockbusters include Khamoshi with Manisha Koirala, Andaz Apna Apna with Amir Khan, Karishma Kapoor and Ravina Tandon, Jab Pyar Kisi Se Hota Hai opposite Twinkle Khanna, Har Dil Jo Pyar Karega opposite Preeti Zinta, to name a few.

He build a manly body from the early part of his career and from that time became the role model of many youngstars of the country. His action films included Auzaar with Shilpa Shetty, Tumko Na Bhool Payenge with Diya Mirza, Tere Naam, Karan Arjun opposite Mamta Kulkarni, to name a few. Although he did not shape his career as an action hero like Sunny Deol or Sanjay Dutt, his performance in action films were very impressive.

He acted in landmark comedy films during his career, which included Maine Pyar Kyun Kiya opposite Katrina Kaif, Mujhse Shaadi Karoge opposite Priyanka Chopra, Partner opposite Lara Dutta, to name a few. This year he acted in the film God Tussi Great Ho with Priyanka Chopra and Big B, which was primarily based on comedy story.

If his films in 2008 can be analyzed it can be said that his film Heroes with Sunny Deol, Bobby Deol and Preeti Zinta, had done best business so far. The films God Tussi Great Ho did average business and the film Yuvvraaj could not rise up to the hype that was created by strong promotion of Subhash Ghai. Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif’s performance had been well appreciated by the film-lovers and the film had created aesthetic values with innovative music and good locations.

His television show Dus Ka Dum in Sony Channel got fantastic response. The leading actors of bollywood films including Akshay Kumar, Priyanka Chopra, Katrina Kaif, Jeetender, Tusshar Kapoor, Amir Khan, Ranbir Kapoor, Deepika Padukone, all appeared in that show and Salman Khan helped all of them for the promotion of their films that were released this year.

Salman Khan had been extremely popular for the viewers of TV Channels for his straight forward communications. He appeared in Saregamapa Music Competition in Zee TV with Katrina Kaif and asked Aditya Narayan, Himesh Reshammiya, Pritam, Shankar Mahadevan and others about the fate of Aneek, Raja and others who had won the competition before. He enquired whether they had got chance in bollywood films or whether they were still struggling. No other bollywood actor would have ever been concerned about the fate of upcoming talents including singers, dancers, actors, etc.

Salman Khan had always been involved with controversies and his good deeds got neutralized due to the killing of deers in Jodhpur, offense relating to rash and negligent driving, etc. But those who had behaved well with Salman Khan know that he is a gem of a human being.

The viewers expect him to get settled after marrying Katrina Kaif and giving lifetime performance in his next film Veer which is going to be released in 2009.

What happened to the classical gharana of Bengali modern songs?

What happened to the classical gharana of Bengali modern songs?

In the 50s and 60s, a number of Bengali classical singers had adorned the firmament of Bengali modern songs. The list included Begum Akhtar, Krishna Ganguly, Ila Bose, Chinmoy Lahiri, A.T. Kanon, etc. The legacy that was created by Vishwadeb Chatterji, Ganendra Prosad Goswami, Tarapodo Chakravarty was carried forward by the above-mentioned singers.

The legendary singers educated the music-lovers about thumris, tappas, kajris, etc. Some of the notable songs included “koeliya gan thama ebar” composed by Gyanprakash Ghosh, “jhanana jhanana baje” composed by Salil Choudhury, “koto je shoyechi betha” composed by Chinmoy Lahiri to mention a few. Manobendra Mukherjee dominated the world of Bengali modern songs, and songs either sung by him or composed by him reached level of excellence in the 50s and 60s.

Some of his memorable songs included “rimjhim baje monjiro kar”, “bare bare ke jeno dake”, “borosha klanto o duti nayan”, “jodi amake dekho tumi udashi”, “seto naam dhore konodin dakeni amay”, “aha na royna”, “hajar jonom dhore”, “mone hoy koto striti”, to mention a few. The songs where he composed music for other singers became equally famous. Some of them included “kemone janabo bolo e pranero bedona” sung by Shefali Chakravarty, “mon bolche kon sondhaye” sung by Alpona Banerjee, “gane gane ami je khuji tomay” sung by Supriti Ghosh, to mention a few.

Dhanonjoy Bhattacharya sang many classical numbers during that age which included “ruma jhuma jhum” composed by Rotu Mukherjee, “kobir kheale premomoy tumi” composed by himself, “maatite jonmo nilam” composed by Probir Mojumdar, “ei jhir jhir jhir batashe” composed by Sudhin Dasgupta, to mention a few. Satinath Mukherjee’s songs “baluka belae kurai jhinuk”, “ajo to elo na she”, “bonopatho majhe”, “pashaner buke” etc., received both admiration and respect from the music-lovers.

Akhil Bandhu Ghosh sang a number of memorable songs like “bashoriya bashi bajayona”, “keno prohoro na jete”, “aaji chandini raati go”, “o dayal bichar koro”, to mention a few. Manna Dey devoted most of his time in singing songs for films, yet many of his basic discs had moved the music-lovers which included “koto dure aar”, “ami aaj akasher moto ekela”, “sundari go”, “lalita, oke aar chole jete bolna”, “shabai to sukhi hote chaye”, “kophota choker jol”, etc., which bewildered the audience from the 50s to the 80s.

Other than successful basic discs of Sandhya Mukherjee and Geeta Dutt, a number of other singers had excellent basic discs. The legendary songs included “koishore ami jekhane bendhechi ghar” sung by Bani Ghoshal, “bolechile tumi gaan shonabe” sung by Alpona Mukherjee, to mention a few.

Someway or the other, the classical gharana faded away in the 70s. One of the reasons must be excessive domination of Hemant Kumar in Bengali film music, where other than Shaymal Mitra and Manna Dey, the rest of the singers did not get that scope. The classical singers did not any motivation and the composers who had the capability of creating landmark songs also died and a new generation was never created.

These days Ajoy Chakravarthy, Rashid Khan, Girija Devi motivates young singers towards classical singing, but the response is not that encouraging. The legendary songs should be restored for the new generation.

Will Amir Khan' charishma pull on Ghajini?

Will Amir Khan’s charishma pull on Ghajini?

Amir Khan has remained the only actor in bollywood films who has addressed the concerns of the refined section of crowds of the country. These days the bollywood industry has very severe competition which is more severe than the 90s. In that age Amir Khan manages to act in least number of films every year and yet maintains his stardom. Tragedy King Dilip Kumar was known for acting in least number of films and act in meaningful films. But other than Amir Khan no other actor had dared to follow the footsteps of Dilip Kumar.

Where Akshay Kumar acted in three films in 2007, and with success in the films Welcome, Bhoobhulaiya and Namaste London, viewers wondered whether Amir Khan would get lost with his directorial venture Taren Zameen Par. But the result of the film was amazing. Every section of the audience including grandparents, parents and children appreciated the subject and Amir Khan received best director award last year. He had diverted his attention towards the cause of children with a bold subject-matter. The music, the story-telling of the film and performance of all the actors were very natural.

From that time onwards, viewers have a separate respect for the young man. Amir Khan is called Mr. Perfectionist and the moment any of his films are released these days, viewers automatically understand that he had come up with a rightful cause. Shahrukh Khan may be King Khan and has the capability of addressing the young generation all across the world, but Amir Khan gets more regard and respect from the thoughtful audience.

With that introduction the debate is raised whether Amir Khan’s individual talent can pull on Ghajini? 1500 prints of the film are released in India and abroad and Amir Khan is very optimistic about the film. It is a remake of a South Indian film Ghajini which was very successful in South India.

The film is related to the story of revenge by a young man. Amir Khan had played the role of a young man whose girlfriend had been killed by a section of people. He suffered from a disease which led to losing his memory every 15 minutes. He thought about taking revenge against the perpetrators of the crime.

But as the memory of Amir Khan had been shown to be lasting for less than 15 minutes, he had to write the names of the killers in his own body. The film had been based on action and as Amir Khan had pointed out to be rightful action. Amir Khan had laboured very hard for more than a year to build his muscular body and it had been a painful exercise. It has been seen in Hollywood films that brilliant actors insist on makeovers of their body for the requirement of different roles. In India, Kamal Hassan and Anil Kapoor had done it in the past. But viewers got astonished with the effort of Amir Khan for more than a year to devote his entire time and attention towards building of the body only for the requirement of the character.

Amir Khan has mentioned in an interview that he is inclined to lose his muscles for the next film which does not require any muscular figure. Amir Khan had shown his tragic feelings for losing the body which he made with such an effort. He is so concerned with the acting that he said he would be very happy if the audience come out of halls and appreciate his acting rather than concentrate on his body.

The music of AR Rehman had been excellent as usual. Sonu Nigam’s song “hai guzarish” had already created waves across the country. The viewers are very excited about the film. The film is bound to bring in high revenue for bollywood industry and has all the possibility of becoming superhit.

Remembering Mohammad Rafi on his birthday.

Remembering Mohammad Rafi on his birthday.

The listeners of quality music in India and all over the world remember Mohammad Rafi on his birthday on 24th December, 2008. He had died in 1980 and 28 years passed after his death. Yet he had created an everlasting appeal during his 35 years illustrious career which has not faded away at all.

Whenever his reference comes music-lovers imagine about “suhani raat dhal chuki” composed by Naushad, “ehsaan tera hoga mujhpar” composed by Shankar Jaikishan, “zindagi bhar nahi bhulenge woh barsaat ki raat” composed by Roshan, “chaudavi ka chaand” composed by Ravi, “abhi na jao chor kar” composed by Jaidev, “chahunga mai tujhe saanz sawere” composed by Laxmikant Pyarellal, “mai pyar ka rahi hoon” composed by OP Nayyar, to name a few.

Very significantly he was associated with all the leading actors of bollywood industry in the 40s, 50s, 60s and 70s, which starts with Bharat Bhushan, Pradeep Kumar, Dilip Kumar, Rajender Kumar, Raj Kumar, Shammi Kapoor, Joy Mukherjee, Biswajeet, Guru Dutt, and extends upto Big B, Rishi Kapoor, Sanjeev Kumar, etc. Even comedians like Johnny Walker, Mehmood were indebted to the maestro for his modification of the voice in favour of them which entertained the audience to a big extent.

Articles after articles have been devoted to the legend of legends Rafi, and if we look back at what he had left for us we will realize that he had created a tradition which was difficult to follow but which has enhanced the singing standard of many singers of later generations. Singers like Anwar, Shabbir Kumar, Mohammad Aziz, struggled to maintain the singing gharana of Rafi and were categorized as clones of Rafi.

But Sonu Nigam, the best singer of the country, had idolized Rafi and carried his legacy forward. He had created his own style of singing and had been the idol of the younger generation for the last 10 years. But whenever any musical concert like “Rafi resurrected” is organized abroad (UK), the first name that comes in the minds of the organizers include Sonu Nigam.

Rafi had sung 26,000 songs in 35 years and that covered the creations and compositions of the most talented composers and lyricists of India. Hardly any singer can be compared or equated with the giant singer. Audience of the modern generation try to equate Kishore Kumar, or Mukesh with the legend, but their comments does not create any scratch on the stardom of the legend, because he had adequate classical training that is required to sing ghazals, thumris, qawallis, mujras, etc., which the contemporary singers did not have. The only two singers who had the depth of voice and classical control who were equated with Rafi in the 50s, 60s, include Lata Mangeshkar and Manna Dey. If reference relating to any other singer comes into picture it addresses the concerns of the non-musical crowds.

Regarding Sonu Nigam, after lending his voice in westernized creations and traditional classical songs which includes songs like “saathiya” composed by AR Rehman, “piyu bole” composed by Shantonu Moitra, “sandese ate hai” composed by Anu Malik, “tenu le” composed by Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, are compared, it can be said that he could have entered in the list of legends of any generation. In fact had he entered the film arena in the 80s, the shuffling of singers from Shabbir Kumar to Anwar and others would not have taken place. Rafi would have been proud himself to hear Sonu Nigam these days, whose legacy is followed by upcoming singers like Imon Chatterji, Rahul Vaidya and others.

Rafi’s admirers expect the media to highlight the greatness of the legend as those who interacted with the giant had said he was a greater human being than a singer. Sonu Nigam’s challenge will be to carry forward the human qualities of Mohamad Rafi. Rafi’s creations should be restored, preserved and the ones which did not get publicity should be unearthed. The listeners pay their respect and regard for the departed soul on his birthday.

Happy birthday to Anil Kapoor.

Happy birthday to Anil Kapoor.

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to superstar Anil Kapoor on 24th December. Critics argue that other than Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor and Amitabh Bacchan, no other actor in India had the same amount of individual talent as Anil Kapoor. He had sustained the heat and storm of bollywood films for more than 25 years and still remains an indispensable figure in bollywood industry. Although Shahrukh Khan and Salman Khan took the industry by storm from the mid-90s, but Anil Kapoor had given one hit or the other in all those years.

Furthermore those actors who had started their career with Anil Kapoor like Jackie Shroff, Sunny Deol and others shifted to character acting, but Anil Kapoor still remained hero in the recent period. That describes his talent in totality. In 2008, he had played different types of roles.

In Race, the first super hit film of 2008, Anil Kapoor played the role of detective who had solved the mystery relating to the death of Saif Ali Khan. He disclosed the fact that Saif Ali Khan had not died but his death was planted. He also witnessed the death of Akshay Khanna when he competed with Saif Ali Khan in a car race. The film was related to the devolvement of family property between the two brothers. Anil Kapoor balanced the suspense –drama with action stunts of Saif Ali Khan, Akshay Khanna and dance sequences of Katrina Kaif, Bipasha Basu and Sameera Reddy. The songs composed by Pritam like “pehli nazar”, “allah duhayi hai” became landmark hits in the early part of the year.

He acted in a negative role in the big banner film Tashan with Saif Ali Khan and Akshay Kumar. He sent Akshay Kumar to collect the debts of Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor. Akshay Kumar discovered his childhood relationship with Kareena Kapoor and took revenge against Anil Kapoor at the end of the film in a power-pact action sequence. Although the film could not do justice to the star-cast and high expectations of the audience of the country, the funny performance of Anil Kapoor could not be ignored.

Anil Kapoor was sublime in Subhash Ghai’s musical venture Yuvvraaj that was released in the last part of the year. It was the first time that Subhash Ghai, AR Rehman and Gulzar had united together to compose the music of the film, and the music had already become hit.

The hit songs of the film included “tu muskura”, “shanno shanno”, “to meri dost hai”, etc. Although Subhash Ghai concentrated more on the romantic presentation of the relationship between Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif in the film, the performance of Anil Kapoor as the elder brother and an innocent character appealed to the viewers the most. The audience has so much weakness for Anil Kapoor that the scene where Zaid Khan had slapped Anil Kapoor had created negative impact on the crowds and there were requests of editing of the scene.

In his long career, Anil Kapoor had acted with giants like Dilip Kumar and Big B in Shakti; Dilip Kumar, Nasiruddin Shah, Jackie Shroff in Karma, Nutan in Meri Jung, etc. He had performed in every type of film including romantic films, comedy films, action dramas, serious films, etc. He had acted opposite different actresses ranging from Padmini Kolhapuri, Sri Devi, Madhuri Dixit to Tabu, Aishwarya Rai, Lara Dutta, to name a few.

Articles after articles can be devoted to the versatile actor. His notable films include Mr. India, Meri Jung, Tezaab, Pukar, Nayak, Virasat, No Entry, to name a few. He received filmfare awards, national awards for best actor and other awards dedicated for the excellence in bollywood cinema. Critics say that he never received the recognition that he deserved in life.

Even then the viewers expect him to continue the good work and entertain the viewers in the same way as he did in the last 25 years.

Aishwarya Rai about Pink Panther

Aishwarya Rai about Pink Panther.

Aishwarya Rai, one of the most popular actresses on international stage had not made her presence felt in bollywood films to that extent this year. Although her first film in this year titled Jodha Akbar with Hrithik Roshan became superhit, she had not been in silver screen after the release of the film Sarkar Raj with Big B and Abhishek Bacchan.

Karan Johar offered the role of Priyanka Chopra to Aishwarya Rai in the film Dostana. Now that Dostana had become super hit, Aishwarya Rai had faced questions on why she refused the role where she had the privilege of acting opposite Abhishek Bacchan and John Abraham.Besides Aishwarya Rai’s glamourous figure could have dazzled in the exotic locations of Miami Beach that had been shot in the film Dostana. In many interviews she disclosed the fact that after her marriage she required some break before contributing seriously in Indian and Hollywood films.

In her recent interview before S. Ramchandran, Aishwarya Rai disclosed the fact that she had presently remained busy with the films Robot, Raavan with director Mani Ratnam and thinking in respect of projects of Vipul Shah and Sanjay Leela Banshali. But more than that she spoke about the film Pink Panther where she played a significant role.

The film Pink Panther was based on the story relating to an Inspector Jacques Clouseau, played by Steve Martin. A number of stars had acted in the film. It included Andy Garcia, Yuki Matsuzaki, Alfred Molina and others. Ofcourse Aishwarya Rai had played a major role in the film.

As the film was related to comedy story, powerful actor Jeremy Irons had accelerated the pace of the film. The film had catered to the expectations of international audience and in that respect Aishwarya Rai had been very optimistic about the success of the film. As she had acted in many Hollywood films including Pride and Prejudice she felt that her performance had a universal appeal which could address any section of the audience.

Besides the popularity of Aishwarya Rai abroad had remained beyond any shadow of doubt as she is the only Indian actress whose wax statue had been created in Madame Tussadd’s Musuem in London. The other Indian actors whose statues are made in that museum include Salman Khan, Shahrukh Khan and Big B.

Returning back to the domination of Aishwarya Rai in Indian films, 2008 had not been a year of Ash as Katrina Kaif and Priyanka Chopra stole the show with many numbers of hit films and performance in big budget films. Although the filmfare awards had not been announced and there may be chance of other actresses of creating an impression, Aishwarya Rai had not fulfilled the wishes of her numerous Indian fans.

But with success in International films Aishwarya Rai has ample capability of making her presence felt on international arena and competing against the new actresses in the following years as she had started working seriously in bollywood films once again and her maturity in acting will contribute a lot in the films in future.

Happy birthday to Govinda

Happy birthday to Govinda.

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Govinda, the master entertainer, on 21st December. Govinda had contributed a lot for bollywood films within last 20 years with his dynamic performances. He had acted in almost all types of roles including the ones played in comedy and action films.

Last year he acted with Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif in the successful film Partner. He learnt the art of impressing girls from Salman Khan. He had soft corner for Katrina Kaif and took lessons from Salman Khan on how to create a lasting impression on her. Salman Khan acted with Lara Dutta in the film.

Govinda had always danced very well althrough his career. There was no exception in the film Partner. The successful songs in the film included “you are my love”, “do you want a partner”, etc. Govinda’s comedy impulse was the big asset of the film.

He had a great relationship with David Dhawan and always contributed in his films. His hit films over the past decade include Hero No. 1, Aunty No.1, Raja Babu, etc. In most of his films his counterpart was played by Karishma Kapoor and Ravina Tandon. The scripts in most of those films helped Govinda to a big extent.

His hit film in the early part of the career included Ankhen. Chunky Pandey also acted with him in that film. Both of them saw a crime committed against Raj Babber. Later they came to know the original minister was kidnapped and the imposter sat in his place. There was lot of drama and the identity was revealed at the end of the film. The film had successful songs which had more comedy element than romantic flavour.

Whenever Govinda acted in serious roles like the one in the film Andolan, along with Sanjay Dutt, he showed his acting skill to perfection. He took revenge against all those villains who killed his father played by Vikram Gokhle and got involved in unlawful activities.

Govinda also acted in romantic films like Salaam-e –ishq along with Salman Khan, Anil Kapoor, John Abraham, Sohail Khan, Akshay Khanna and others. The film was related to how he impressed a foreigner who was defeated in love and required help from a taxi-driver played by Govinda.

His performance in the film Deewana Mastana opposite Anil Kapoor and Juhi Chawla also requires special mention. Both Anil Kapoor and Govinda liked Juhi Chawla and showed their comedy skills to impress her. Both of them created traps for each other in the film. The music in the film also became extremely successful.

From the time Govinda became MP under Congress (i) ticket, he reduced his number of films. Even then his admirers wish him on his birthday best of luck for his films in future as he is a big asset of bollywood industry and lot of acting still left in him.

Manju Dey - the towering actress of Bengali films

Manju Dey – the towering actress of Bengali films.

Manju Dey was considered one of the towering actresses of Bengali films of the 50s and 60s. Along with an enterprising screen presence she also had a mellifluous voice. She mesmerized the viewers with her powerful performance in the film Jighansha, directed by renowned Bengali director Ajoy Kar. The film was based on the detective story of Arthur Conan Doyle titled The Hound Of Baskervilles. In the early 50s, the black –white classic took the Bengali audience by storm.

Manju Dey played the role of the daughter of Bikash Roy, who was one of the successors of the princely estate who was deprived of his right over property. He stayed in the same estate in the disguise of an old botanist. He used Manju Dey, his daughter to act as witch who sang spooky songs around marshy land and drew the prince towards that area when Bikash Roy hired a serial killer to kill him. The detective in the film played by Shishir Botobyal, who played the same role as Sherlock Holmes in The Hound Baskervilles detected the identity and solved the mystery. The same film was remade in hindi with the title Bees Saal Baad, where Wahida Rehman played the role of Manju Dey and Biswajeet played the role of the prince.

Manju Dey impressed the viewers with her role in Mrinal Sen’s film Neel Akasher Niche. She played the role of wife of Bikash Roy, a middle-class Bengali and was sympathetic towards Kali Banerjee, a Chinaman in the film who came from China and settled in the streets of Kolkata to sell his produce. The film required the depth of acting from Manju Dey in respect of showing compassion towards a foreigner who had come from a distant place and struggled to earn his livelihood in Kolkata.

She was sublime in the film Biyallish (42), opposite Pradeep Kumar. The film was based on the Indian freedom struggle and how the domestic wives of the nation participated in the freedom movement. She and her husband Pradeep Kumar was tortured by British officer played by Bikash Roy and yet she was firm in her commitment.

She established herself as a successful director with the film Abhishapto Chambal based on the novel by Tarun Bhadhuri, the father of Jaya Bhaduri. She acted in the film and showed her powerful personality. She learned horse-riding and acted along with other dacoits like Shekhar Chatterjee and others. Pradeep Kumar played the role of the husband of Manju Dey in the film and impressed with his manly performance. He died and after that it was left upto Manju Dey to take revenge against the alleged offenders. Her other successfully directed film included Shajarur Kanta (Porcupine’s thorn), which was a crime-thriller and impressed the viewers again.

Manju Dey also contributed in the classic films in the 50s including Tapan Sinha’s film Kabuliwala based on the epic novel of Rabindranath Tagore. She played the role of the mother of the little girl Mini, who had attachment towards an Afghan fruit-seller played by Chabi Biswas. Later on Chabi Biswas was imprisoned and after being released from jail came to their house. All preparations were made for the marriage of Mini. Manju Dey advised her husband played by Radha Mohan Bhattacharya to give the money that was saved for the lighting in the marriage to be given to Chabi Biswas so that he could go back to his own country and meet his own daughter who was of same age of Mini.

Manju Dey was used in off-beat films and experimental roles in her illustrious career and although her position was not same as the greatest actress of Bengal, that is Suchitra Sen, whenever her films like Kar Pape opposite Asit Boron, Upahaar opposite Uttam Kumar, etc., are revisited it will be inferred that she was one of the most dynamic actresses of Bengali films during the classic period. According to critics, other than Suchitra Sen and Arundhuti Debi, Manju Dey had the most dynamic personality and for those reasons her films should be preserved and restored.

Deepika Padukone has a real challenge ahead.

Deepika Padukone has a real challenge ahead.

Deepika Padukone, the daughter of International Badminton player Prakash Padukone, was born on 5th January, 1986. She accomplished her studies from Mount Carmel College in Australia and pursued her career as a super model. She had modeled for famous Indian brands like Limca, Dabur Lal Powder, Close Up Toothpaste and Liril.

She won the Model of the Year award at the Kingfisher Fashion Awards, became one of the models for Kingfisher Swimsuit Calender 2006 and won two awards at the Idea Zee Fashion awards. She became the brand ambassador of Kingfisher Airlines, Levi Strauss, Tissot SA.

After impressing the judges of the modeling world she featured in private album Aap Ka Suroor of Himesh Reshamiya. She got one of the biggest breaks of her life in Farah Khan’s film Om Shanti Om.

She had a double role in the film which was based on reincarnation. Shahrukh Khan also played a double role and created history with his entertaining performance. The music of Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy was superlative and the songs contributed a lot in the success of the film.

The film also had the dream sequence with the song “om shanty om” where actors like Dharmender, Jeetender, Salman Khan, Saif Ali Khan, Sanjay Dutt, Lara Dutta, Rekha, Shabana Azmi, Priyanka Chopra, etc., gave lips. The other songs “tumko paya hai to”, “ankho me teri ajab si ajab si adayein hai”, etc. The dancing capabilities of Deepika Padukone was also exposed in the song “din tana na na na”, where images of Sunil Dutt, Jeetender, Rajesh Khanna were superimposed.

If Om Shanti Om was a dream for Deepika Padukone, the next film Bacchna Aye Haseeno was also after mirth. She was one of the girls other than Bipasha Basu and Minissha Lamba who had involvement with Ranbir Kapoor in the film and changed his life. This film also had exotic locations, melodious music of Vishal Shekhar. The songs “bacchna aye haseeno”, “ki mujhe pyar hai” had created waves in the minds of the viewers after the release of the film.

If the awards of Deepika Padukone in the form of Best Debutant under the Filmfare Awards and box-office success of the two films are separated Deepika will face reality for the first time with the film Chandni Chowk to China. Akshay Kumar will act opposite her in the film.

The film is going to be released this year itself and it has both comedy and action. Akshay Kumar had been shown as a cook who will learn martial art and show his skills in China. By this period of time Deepika Padukone’s glamour had been acknowledged by the viewers and the critics.

But her acting capability is still under introspection. In Chandni Chowk to China and the following films like Production No. 1, her acting performance will be scanned and if she succeeds she will be following the gharana of Aishwarya Rai, Sushmita Sen, Priyanka Chopra, Lara Dutta and others who had come from the fashion world and took bollywood films by storm. In that sense her real challenge is ahead.

Kangana Ranaut - the sizzling star of bollywood

Kangana Ranaut – the sizzling star of bollywood.

Kangana Ranaut had created deep impact on her viewers with sizzling performances one after the year in the last few years. Born on March 20th, 1987, Kangana Ranaut had her education in Shimla. She joined Asmita Theatre Group in New Delhi and got guidance from legendary theatre personality Arvind Gaur.

She participated in many theatre workshops that took place in different parts of India. She acted in Girish Karnad’s play Taledanda. She started her career in bollywood films with the performance in Mahesh Bhatt’s film Gangster in 2006. She received the filmfare best female debut award for the film Gangster.

From that time her sizzling presence in bollywood films made her a powerful star. Her other films Who Lamhe and Life in a Metro became successful. Anurag Basu’s project Life in A Metro was related to the story of a girl who got confused in a metro city and had no other way to understand whether the person who gets involved with her really loves her or not.

After the success of the film Life in a Metro were she not only got good response but also critical acclamation she got decent role of an aspiring singer in the film Shakalaka Boom Boom. Within the short career she got the taste of performing both in commercial films as well as those films which are made for intellectual audience.

She got the biggest break in Madhur Bhandarkar’s film Fashion that had been released in 2008. Madhur Bhandarkar had been known for making off-beat films and he had done experiments in the past on diverse subjects. The film Fashion was based on the complexity that lies in the lives of professionals in the fashion industry who are never happy and sometimes even ends up in depression.

Kangana Ranaut had the challenge of showing her spicy performance opposite established actress Priyanka Chopra in the film who had got a major role in the film. Kangana was shown as one of the models who rose to stardom in the film and later on became subjected to drug abuse. The fashion industry has many similarities with the film industry. Here the moment a person is successful all the players in the industry remember the person. The moment any members gets allegations relating to any offense or gets involved in scandals the same people maintain distance with the person and in some cases forget the person.

Kangana is acting in one of the landmark thriller film Raaz – the Mystery Continues. As the name indicates the film is related to a suspense which is unfolded at the end of the film. Kangana had given able lips also in the songs that had been picturised in the films she had acted in so far.

The viewers expect Kangana to do even better in the upcoming films Roshan, Kite, Happy New Year and increase the competition that is already there in the bollywood industry.

Fantastic response to Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi.

Fantastic response to Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi.

The viewers had given fantastic response to the film Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi. Sharukh Khan had acted in minimum number of films in 2008, that is only two, if Bhootnath is counted, and it is one if any major role is taken into consideration. Furthermore the heroine in the film Anushka Sharma is a new actress who is not known in bollywood films.

Inspite of all this Shahrukh Khan had shown the viewers why he is still considered King Khan. Within the first week itself the film had fantastic collections and has all the indications of becoming hit in due period of time. Shahrukh Khan during the earlier part of 2008 had involved himself in Indian Cricket League by sponsoring Kolkata Knight Riders under the captainship of Saurav Ganguly.

For those reasons who could not devote much of his time in the first part of the year. In the film Bhootnath which was made for children, Shahrukh Khan acted in the role of the father of the main child actor who got involved with Big B in the film. In strict sense it was not Shahrukh Khan’s major role at all.

Besides, in 2008, already bollywood had produced a number of hit films althrough the year. The list starts with Hrithik Roshan and Aishwarya Rai’s film Jodha Akbar, Akshay Khanna, Katrina Kaif’s Race, Imran Khan’s Jane Tu Ya Jane Na, Salman Khan, Sunny Deol’s Heroes, Ajay Devgan’s Golmaal Returns, Akshay Kumar’s Singh is Kinng, to name a few. With Shahrukh Khan not acting in any major film, his viewers thought that he had run out of the rat race.

Shahrukh Khan bounced back with a bang. He had worked even with Anushka Sharma, who has just started his career with the film. According to the requirement of the story, he started the film with the make up of a middle-class person. The song “hole hole ho jayega pyar” in the film was picturised with Shahrukh Khan in his middle-class make up.

There was a dance competition in the town where Shahrukh Khan and his wife participated in the film. Shahrukh Khan changed his make up and reduced his age for the dance competition.

From that time onwards Shahrukh Khan acted with his known mannerisms and amazed the viewers. One fact is evident. Shahrukh Khan had a lot of energy during the 90s and even today. Whenever he appears in bollywood films his energy and enthusiasm is exhibited which carries the films towards success.

Although by performing in less number of films he had not competed in the bollywood rat race in the fullest sense of the term, but his late performance at the end of the year shows that he is still an important contender of filmfare awards and will contribute towards earning more revenue for the industry.

Happy birthday to John Abraham

Happy birthday to John Abraham.

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to John Abraham on 17th December, 2008. Born in 1972, John Abraham attracted most of the producers and directors after building a manly body and appearing in many fashion contests. His dialogue throwing also had a Hollywood style more than Indian mannerisms.

John Abraham impressed the viewers with his powerful performance in the film Kaal, opposite Lara Dutta, Ajay Devgan, Vivek Oberoi, Esha Deol and others. A number of persons were killed near Corbett National Park in UP and there was a mystery relating to those deaths. People thought that man-eating tigers in the region were responsible for the deaths of those persons. But later on the truth was unfolded and it was known that Ajay Devgan was a supernatural being and he killed everyone else in the forest. John Abraham’s stylish performance and macho image worked a lot in the success of the film where the rest of the actors also did very well.

In the film Salaam-e-Ishq, he did very well opposite Vidya Balan, where the romantic pairs consisting of Salman Khan and Priyanka Chopra, Anil Kapoor and Juhi Chawla, Govinda and a European actress, Sohail Khan and Isha Koppikar, Akshay Khanna and Ayesha Takia, did very well in their respective roles. John Abraham’s wife Vidya Balan lost her memory after she met with a railway accident.

Throughout the film John Abraham tried to recreate the memory the Vidya Balan and recollected the past experiences. The music in the film composed by Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy became superhit. The landmark songs in the film included “tenule”, “salaam-e-ishq”, etc., to name a few.

In 2008, John Abraham acted in one of the biggest blockbusers of the year titled Dostana, where he acted in a gay role opposite Abhishek Bacchan. Priyanka Chopra played the role of the friend of the two actors John Abraham and Abhishek Bacchan. Karan Johar’s films are known for their exotic locations and melodious music.

Karan Johar did not disappoint his viewers in the film Dostana also. The beaches of Miami had attracted viewers of different ages. The songs “desi girl” and other songs became hits even before the release of the film. John Abraham’s body as exhibited in the film could have made any other actor of bollywood envious.

John Abraham within his short career had acted with all the leading actors of bollywood which even include Nana Patekar. His pair with Bipasha Basu remained a big topic of discussion few years back.

The viewers expect on the birthday of John Abraham that the macho man will even give better performance in the years to come and will be a serious threat for established actors like Shahrukh Khan and Salman Khan.

Review of the film Tintorretor Jishu.

Review of the film Tintorretor Jishu.

Sandip Ray, the son of renowned director Satyajit Ray, the only Indian director who received Oscar award for lifetime contribution to motion pictures, created his new film Tintorretor Jishu based on the detective story written by Satyajit Ray. His characters Prodosh Mitra (Feluda), Tapesh Mitra (Topshe) and Lal Mohan Ganguly (jatayu) all were created on screen in the film Tintorretor Jishu.

Satyajit Ray introduced his viewers with these characters with his epic film Sonar Kella and Joy Baba Felunath in the mid-70s. After that he could not make any new episode on Feluda due to the sudden death of Santosh Dutta, the actor who played the role of Lal Mohan Ganguly in Sonar Kella and Joy Baba Felunath. His son Sandip Ray had experimented with these characters and in the last few films he had stuck to one team consisting of Sabyasachi Chakravarthy playing the role of Feluda (the private investigator), Parambroto Chatterji playing the role of Topesh, and Bibhu Bhattacharya playing the role of Lal Mohan Ganguly (the writer who is an admirer of Feluda).

As Satyajit Ray’s films had always been made for international audience and whenever they have been send in International Film Festivals, English subtitles are created for the non-bengali viewers. Sandip Ray’s films also are catered to the viewership of Bengali and non-bengali audience and for those who had previously watched Satyajit Ray’s films the expectations are huge.

He had made two episodes of Satyajit Ray previously with the title Bombaiyer Bombete and Kailashe Kelenkari and both were appreciated. The story of the film revolves around the mystery relating to the painting of famous Italian painter named Tintoretto which gets stolen. Feluda chases the perpetrators of the crime from Kolkata to Hongkong to solve the mystery.

The producers had spend a lot of money on international location if compared with the other episodes of Feluda, where the scene of occurrence was related to Indian places like Jaisalmer, Benaras, Mumbai, etc. For those reasons the exotic locations had created new dimension for the Feluda-lovers across the world.

The performance of Sabyasachi had been impressive along with the performance of Bibhu Bhattacharya in a serio-comic role. Paran Banerjee had also done well in his respective role. The script had been ideal and the theme music also worth mentioning.

The only concern lies with respect to the fact that the viewers these days are posted with updated version of Hollywood films, and in that perspective whether the detective story relating to Tintorettor Jishu could update the viewers with the modern gazettes that are expected to be used by a detective of 21st century. The story is brilliant and can be compared with any successful stories of Arthur Conan Doyle or Agatha Christie. The viewers should watch the film to educate themselves with thoughtful literature based on science fiction and powerful story telling.

Has Neha Dhupia lost her attractive appeal?

Has Neha Dhupia lost her attractive appeal?

Neha Dhupia, the daughter of Commander Pradip Dhupia of Indian Navy, had attracted public attention after winning the Miss India Universe 2002 crown in that year. After beginning her career in the film Qayamat: City Under Threat, she impressed the viewers with challenging role in the film Julie where her glamour was used to perfection.

But she got a notable role in the film Kya Cool Hai Hum in 2005. She acted opposite Ritesh Deshmukh where Tusshar Kapoor and Isha Koppikar were the other pair. Isha Koppikar, the police officer in the film was sent by Anupam Kher to investigate a case relating to a habitual offender. Tusshar Kapoor was suspected to be a murderer and Isha Koppikar was sent to his house to monitor his activities. Ritesh Deshmukh had an affair with Neha Dhupia and married her at the end of the film. The film was serio-comic in nature and Neha Dhupia performed very well in her respective role.

She also got a purposeful role in the film Shootout At Lokhandwala. The film was related to a real-life story where the Bombay police had trapped the underworld group in a house in Bombay and fired at them. Sanjay Dutt gave a memorable performance in the role of Encounter specialist in the film opposite Vivek Oberoi who played the role of a mafia don. Neha Dhupia did her part very well.

She did even better in the film Chup Chup Ke, in the role of the sister of Kareena Kapoor. Shahid Kapoor pretended to be dumb in the film and stayed in their house. Neha Dhupia acted as a mediator between Kareena Kapoor and Shahid Kapoor and helped in the marriage between the two. Neha Dhupia knew that Shahid Kapoor could speak but never informed Sunil Shetty or Om Puri or any other member of the house about it. Although the film was related to the serio-comic relationship between Om Puri, Paresh Rawal and Rajpal Yadav, Neha Dhupia kept her mark in a reserve role and in some of the sequences even acted better than Kareena Kapoor.

She was even impressive in her supporting role in the film Singh is Kinng, where Katrina Kaif and Akshay Kumar had the lead roles. Singh is Kinng also did good business in India and abroad.

But if her performance in the earlier films like Sheesha and new films like Mithya are compared it will be found that initially the stylish screen presence and bold performance of Neha Dhupia was publicized by the producers.

These days the acting skills of Neha Dhupia are used. So it raises the valid question, whether the glamour of Neha Dhupia had decreased over the period of time? Unless she grabs any glamourous role in near future she will not remain in the rat race where the competition between Priyanka Chopra, Katrina Kaif, Kareena Kapoor is very keen.

Remembering Raj Kapoor

Remembering Raj Kapoor.

Raj Kapoor, the greatest showman of last millennium would have celebrated his 85th birthday had he been alive. He had created the larger than life image of bollywood stars to perfection over a period of 50 years. He started his career as a producer, director with the film Aag, in 1947, where his faced was burnt due to the outbreak of fire.

In Awara, in 1951, he worked with the theme that human beings are the products of the society where they are brought up, genetic background does not determine the only characteristic of human beings. He was born out of the wedlock of Prithviraj Kapoor and Lila Chiknis and yet was born and brought up in a slum. Prithviraj Kapoor was an advocate of repute whose wife was kidnapped by a dacoit played by KN Singh. As he thought the dacoit had touched his wife he threw his wife and child out of his house. So the unlawful surroundings of Raj Kapoor compelled him to be a thief who was ultimately defended by his girlfriend and advocate played by Nargis. The music of Shankar Jaikishan became trend-setter with Lata’ s songs “ghar aya mera pardesi”, Mukesh’s songs “awara hoon” creating an impact on Indian and Russian audience.

Raj Kapoor’s message to the society continued in the film Shree 420. When he tried to get a job with his honesty, he was refused by the employers. When he got involved in unlawful activities by showing his skills in the game of cards, he became rich. Nadira and others got impressed and he got prestige in the society. Again the music of Shankar Jaikishan became superhit with all the songs of Manna Dey, Mukesh, Rafi, Lata, Asha becoming super hits. The hit songs include “ramaiya vasta maiyya”, “ichaakdana”, “pyar hua ikraar hua hai”, “dil ka haal sune dilwala”, “mur murke na dekh mur murke”, “mera jota hai japani”, to name a few.

His films Anari and Jis Desh Me Ganga Behti Hai again carried the social message like his earlier films. Anari was directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee and Jis Desh Me Ganga Behti Hai was directed by Radhu Karmakar. Raj Kapoor received the filmfare award for the best actor for his performance in both these films. He also contributed with other realistic films in the 50s like Boot Polish and Jagte Raho where his social message had enlightened the viewers.

With the advent of coloured films Raj Kapoor gave one of the biggest blockbusters of his career with the film Sangam in 1964. It was based on triangular love story between himself, Rajender Kumar and Vaijayantimala. The exotic locations of Switzerland, London and other places of Europe created a landmark in the history of bollywood films. The music of Shankar Jaikishan again stormed bollywood films with hit songs of Rafi, Lata and Mukesh including “yeh mera prem patra par kar”, “dost dost na raha”, “har dil jo pyar karega”, “o mehbooba”, to name a few.

The other notable films of Raj Kapoor as a hero included Sharda with Meena Kumari, Ek Dil Sau Afsana and Teesri Kasam with Wahida Rehman, Nazrana with Vaijayantimala, Diwana with Saira Banu, Around the World with Rajashree, Sapno Ka Saudagar with Hema Malini, Mera Naam Joker with Padmini, to name a few. Shankar Jaikishan’s powerful music contributed a lot in almost all these films. Raj Kapoor’s music always touched the souls of numerous Indians during the 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s.

After Mera Naam Joker, Raj Kapoor promoted his sons Rishi Kapoor and Rajiv Kapoor. His film Bobby was related to teenage romance, Satyam Shivam Sundaram was related to social barriers related to the life a girl with a burnt face, Prem Rog was related to miseries of a widow in Indian society, Ram Teri Ganga Maili was related to the pollution in the minds of Indians across the country which more severe than the pollution of Holy river Ganges.

Raj Kapoor died in 1988, after receiving the highest award of Indian films, Dada Saheb Phalke. He could not complete his film Henna, which was completed by Randhir Kapoor. If Dilip Kumar had glorified bollywood films with his immortal performances over 60 years, then Raj Kapoor had shown the viewers how to dream and what does showmanship mean. His legacy had been carried forward by Rishi Kapoor for the next 20 years.

The viewers remember the greatest showman of bollywood on 14th December, the birthday of Raj Kapoor.

Minissha Lamba - the cool actress of silver screen.

Minissha Lamba – the cool actress of silver screen.

Minissha Lamba had established her one of the cool actresses of Indian silver screen. Born on January 18th, 1985, Minissha flourished in the world of modeling and did several television commercials for companies like LG, Sony, Cadbury, Hajmola, Airtel, and others.

She caught the attention of different viewers with her performance in those TV commercials and got a break in Sujit Sircar’s film Yahaan in 2005. She also acted in the off-beat film Corporate in the role of Megha Apte. The film was related to the complications that lie in the corporate world where the materialistic interests of all the players dominate the private emotions of members of that world. Even Bipasha Basu did very well in the film. Minissha’s role was not that prominent in the film, but producers could realize her acting capability and that led to better offers in prominent roles in the later years.

In 2006, Minissha got notable roles in the films Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Limited, Anthony Kaun Hai, etc., and got appreciation for those roles. The other notable roles included the performance in Dus Kahaniya and Anamika.

She got the biggest break in the film Bacchna Aye Haseeno in 2008, where she acted opposite Ranbir Kapoor, Bipasha Basu and Deepika Padukone. The film was related to the story of Ranbir Kapoor who got involved with three different ladies played by Minissha Lamba, Bipasha Basu and Deepika Padukone in three separate episodes in the film. The climax of the film was related to the fact that how the three girls had influenced him in his life.

The music composed by Vishal Shekhar became super hit and the foreign locations attracted viewers all across the country. The hit songs included “bacchna aye haseeno”, “mujhe pyar hai”, etc.

After the success in that film Minissha did extremely well in the film Kidnap. She played the role of the daughter of Sanjay Dutt who had divorced her mother. Imran Khan played the role of kidnapper in the film.

He kidnapped Minissha Lamba and blackmailed Sanjay Dutt and asked for the ransom. Although Sanjay Dutt did not maintain his relationship with Minissha’s mother for a longtime when the question came as to saving the young daughter he used his influence to counter him. The film had many action sequences and the suspense was well planted. Minissha’s performance was well appreciated.

The viewers expect that Minissha Lamba will mix her glamour with quality acting and she can be a big asset for the bollywood industry.

Happy birthday to Rajnikant

Happy birthday to Rajnikant.

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Rajnikant on 12th December, 2008. For the last 20 years he had remained as one of the most popular superstars of South Indian films and carried his stardom in bollywood films as well.

From the beginning of his career he had created an identity in action films. He had his own mannerisms which were liked by South Indian audience and was also new for bollywood viewers. In the film Andha Kanoon, he acted along with Big B. His parents were tortured and killed in the film by Pran, Prem Chopra and Danny. The entire film was related to the revenge that he had taken against all those actors. His sister’s role was played by Hema Malini who was a police-officer in the film. There were romantic sequences in the film as well where Rina Roy contributed opposite Rajnikant, but as the action sequences became predominating there was not much scope for the romantic performance. The film became superhit in the early 80s.

Rajnikant showed his skills in action films along with Kamal Hassan and Big B in the film Geraftar. There he played the role of a friend of Big B, who was killed during an encounter with the villains in the film. The action sequences in the film became famous during mid-80s. Also the music of Bappi Lahiri became popular.

During the mid-80s Rajnikant acted in the superhit film Chaalbaaz which was made in the same line as Ram Aur Shyam and Seeta Aur Geeta. In the earlier films the double roles played by Dilip Kumar and Hema Malini amused the viewers. In Chaalbaaz the double role was played by Sri Devi. Rajnikant and Sunny Deol were the two heroes in the film. As the film was based on comedy of errors Rajnikant used his comedy skills to perfection opposite Sri Devi. Also Anupam kher did an experiment in the negative role in the film.

Rajnikant had been one of the most popular icons of tamil films for generations and had carried forward the legacy that was created by Shivaji Ganeshan, Jemini Ganeshan and others. The list of his hit films are too long and cannot be highlighted in a small article. Even his latest that was released last year titled Shivaji had become super hit. He also played a very active role in South Indian politics. He campaigned for the political party Dravida Munetra Khazagham (DMK) under the leadership of M. Karunanidhi.

Filmstars in South India are hailed across all the four states Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh as the languages Tamil, Telegu, Kannada and Malayalam are very close to each other. Rajnikant had remained popular for more than 25 years and the people at large could identify themselves in the diversified characters that Rajnikant had played during his long career.

Whenever the list of South Indian filmstars who had glorified bollywood films comes into question the name of Rajnikant comes at the top along with Kamal Hassan, Chiranjeevi, Nagarjuna, Arvind Swami and others. The All India audience expect Rajnikant to continue his excellent work both in South Indian films as well as bollywood films in the years to come.

Happy birthday to Dilip Kumar, the greatest actor of all times.

Happy birthday to Dilip Kumar, the greatest actor of all times.

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to Dilip Kumar, better known as Tragedy King on 11th December, 2008. Born in 1922, Yusuf Khan, one of the greatest actors of bollywood films of all times had created new dimensions at every decade with his unique style of acting.

Although his performance in tragic roles like Bimal Roy’s Devdas and Madhumati, Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s Musafir, and other landmark films had made him an icon of tragedy, he had proved his variation in comedy films, social films, action-oriented blockbusters. Directors like Bimal Roy, K. Asif, Tapan Sinha, Subhash Ghai, consider Dilip Kumar as the greatest actor of all times. He had made the characters immortal which he had played in his illustrious career.

He had given extraordinary lips in landmark songs of the 50s and 60s sung by Mohammad Rafi like “madhuban me radhika nachere” and “do sitaron ka zameen par hai milan aaj ki raat” in the film Kohinoor, “ek shahenshah ne banwake haseen tajmahal”, “tere husn ka kya tareef karun”, “apni azadi ko hum hargese mita sakte nahi”, in the film Leader, “dilruba maine tere pyar me kya kya na kiya”, “koi sagar dilko behlata nahi” in the film Dil Diya Dard Liya, “aaj ki raat mere”, “aye hai bahare dekho” in the film Ram Aur Shyam, to name a few. Giant composer Naushad made the greatest contribution in the films of Dilip Kumar, although Shankar Jaikishan gave quality music in the films Yahudi and Daag, Salil Choudhury contributed in the films Madhumati and Musafir.

Dilip Kumar had acted opposite all the leading actresses of 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, including Madhubala in Tarana, Mughal-i-Azam, Nargis in Babul, Andaz, Meena Kumari in Kohinoor, Azad, Footpath, Vaijayantimala in Madhumati, Ganga Jumna, Leader, Wahida Rehman in Dil Diya Dard Liya, Aadmi, Ram Aur Shyam, Saira Banu in Sagina, Gopi, to name a few.

Even during the 80s, his character roles created new dimension in bollywood films. His performance in the film Mashal, Masdoor, Shakti, Karma had inspired the new generation of actors like Anil Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor and others. He has the record of getting the filmfare award for the best actor for the maximum number of times which had not been broken by even Shahrukh Khan till now.

Dilip Kumar had not learned acting from any acting school yet the way he had made Sarat Chandra Chatterjee’s character Devdas immortal, the actors of the next generation consider him an institution by himself. He had played roles of even trade union leaders in the film Sagina, he was the first actor in bollywood films to perform in a double role in the film Ram Aur Shyam. He created a trend and films with double roles were created in the same lines as that of Ram Aur Shyam in Seeta Aur Geeta, Chaalbaaz, Kishen Kanhaiya.

He received the highest civilian award given by Pakistan, which was previously received by only one Indian, that is the former Prime Minister Morarji Desai. He had also received Dadasaheb Phalke award for his contribution in bollywood films. It is not possible t0 highlight the contribution of the legend of legends in a small article, as he had created an image which made him indispensable over 60 years in bollywood films.

Yet his journey is not over. Even these days directors like Subhash Ghai engage him with his new projects these days. The viewers want Dilip Kumar to continue acting in bollywood films if his health permits. Viewers had got addicted to his soft tune of dialogue throwing and want him to reproduce the magic again.